Wednesday, August 15, 2018

It's that time of year again, when I start to think about making hats for the grands. I picked up both the Rotating Double Knit Loom and this pretty yarn when visiting the US this Spring and I finally took the loom out of the box. It's interesting to work on - took a little getting used to and I haven't done much double knitting on my looms at all.

Olivia is seven, and suffers from Advanced Pulmonary Hypertension. When it's cold out, it literally takes her breath away so the cowl has to be deep enough that she can pull it up and completely cover her nose and mouth getting in and out of the car for school etc, yet still keep her neck warm.

There is an anchor yarn - again, my first time using that - at the cast on row, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do with it. I will figure it out once I'm done the knitting - I'm sure someone else has posted instructions somewhere online. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying getting back to my looms!

Monday, September 25, 2017

I stayed up well past midnight last night, so I could give three of the Grandkids their new hats this afternoon. I had worked on a cowl for Olivia first, as with her Pulmonary Hypertension she can't breathe when it gets cold out. A cowl needs to be deep enough that she can pull it up over her face. She is in a wheelchair usually when she is out, so she doesn't need to see or manage walking while having her face covered. She does, however need to breathe! I also made her a matching hat.

I had made Ethan's hat earlier, which I posted. But as lovely as that Brioche stitch is - there is just not enough stretch in it and our daughter sent me a photo of Ethan looking like a cone head as it rode up his head every time he wore it. So he also needed a new one. Live and learn.

Zachary asked for a green hat and I got his done too.

But ... I forgot to take photos of the finished projects to share here! I can't believe it - first time. However, the grands agreed to pose for a photo wearing their new hats so I can share that at least.

I used the green Knifty Knitter loom for all three hats, and the larger yellow one for the cowl. Since it was thin, I knit the cowl twice as long and then doubled it up, crocheting a border to join the cast on and cast off edges together. That makes it a nice cushy double knit piece that will easily pull up over the back of Olivia's head for additional warmth.

Ethan's hat is a basket pattern with alternating knit and purl blocks. Zachary's and Olivia's are a simple spiral. You can tell that Ethan likes blue, Zachary likes green and Olivia is still loving pink and purple.

I haven't done a double knit brim on my hats since I first started looming, but they were a hit today! My son-in-law asked if he could have one too, and our other Grandson Ilai got to choose whether he wanted a blue or a green hat as I have enough wool left of both to make another one. Alma will get a hat that matches Olivia's.

I will make sure to take photos of those hats before I hand them off. Still can't believe I forgot to take close up photos, they turned out so good!

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Well it seems like I finished this Pagosa Springs Scarf in the nick of time. In fact, the weather turned c-c-c-cold before I'd even had a chance to block and photograph it, so I wore it a couple of times first.

If you didn't see my last post with the Work In Progress, I'm using Dayna Scoles Loom Knit pattern from her Etsy store which you can find HERE.

This is the yarn I used, with the yellow Knifty Knitter loom.

I really like the colours - they are bright but still perfect for Autumn. This pretty scarf brightens up my black jacket and matches my burgundy one.

I already have made several of these Pagosa Springs Scarves and I just love them. I still wear the others in the cooler weather, and probably didn't need another ... but hey. This yarn was calling to me!

Sunday, September 10, 2017

I'm back today with another Work In Progress. I have had two skeins of this lovely colorway yarn for a couple of years and decided I'd take it camping with me this past long weekend. I also brought Dayna Scoles Pagosa Springs Scarf pattern, which I bought from her Etsy store quite awhile ago. This is my third or fourth Pagosa Springs Scarf!

The colours are so pretty - and I love her 'Rivulet Stitch'. It looks different depending on what yarn you use. It's more open and lacy if you use a fine yarn, but the stitch is more pronounced if you use a heavier one.

Rather than post a direct link to the Pagosa Springs Scarf pattern, HERE is the link to her Etsy store. If you are interested in loom knit patterns, you will want to check out her entire store and not just this one.

I'm just over half way done this one, having started the decreases already. This is another pattern that works up fairly quickly and once you find your groove, it's quite zen-like to work on.

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

I finished Ethan's hat, and he is very happy with it. I am in love with this Brioche Stitch - it's different than anything I've done before and works up quickly to boot.

I did have trouble following the stitch sequence on the solid colour only (brim), but I think if I use stitch markers the next time it will help.

I was on a roll, and all of a sudden I realized the hat was probably going to be too long. So I continued to make it a little deeper, because when you roll the brim up it fits him perfectly. And it will keep his ears warmer too.

Even the inside of the hat looks so cool with this stitch!

The hat is very thick and warm - the blue yarn I used was a #5. The variegated yarn is thin, so I used the Navajo method of using three strands of a single yarn ball to bulk it up the same as the #5. There also isn't a lot of stretch in this hat! If I'd used just the #5 yarn and the same green Knifty Knitter Loom I expect the hat would have been far too loose for a 5 year old.

The hat also fit Zachary, so I think I will start another one for him ... he has requested green and black please. I think I may have to go yarn shopping!

You can find the pattern HERE. I'm so grateful for Tuteate's willingness to share her talents with us!

Thursday, August 31, 2017

We have been doing some camping, and since we are 'off the grid' there, I wanted to bring something to DO while the rest of the family is off doing hiking etc. I can't join them because of my RA but I don't want to stay home, either.

I thought I'd bring along some loom knitting, as I can sit outside and enjoy the fresh air & sunshine - while still accomplishing something. It will be time for winter hats soon - so I thought I'd start with Ethan's. He is always the most appreciative of my knitting, and loves that I will make him a BLUE hat. Ethan (age 4) loves blue.

I saw this amazing Brioche Stitch Hat on Pinterest, which took me to Tuteate's YouTube channel. I often say "God Bless the people on YouTube who share their talents with the rest of us" and this is certainly one of those times. I'm loving this Brioche stitch and the hat is working up quickly. I will post the link below.

Here is the start of Ethan's hat:

I'm not crazy about the cast-on edge, I think I will do a crochet cast-on with the next one, but since I like to do a single crochet border around the brim of my hats anyhow, this one will be fine.

Thursday, December 15, 2016

Well little Alma is growing, as healthy newborns should do - and she was ready for the next size up hat.

I used the same yarn combo as in the previous post - it's just further down the variegated portion of the yarn.

Instead of the 'Hurdle Stitch' that I've been using lately, I did a different stitch sequence. It doesn't show up really well on such a tiny hat but I will try it the next time I'm going to make a hat.

It's a two row sequence ... "E-wrap two pegs, then Purl one peg" all the way around. I used a 36 peg CinDWood loom, so with the even number of pegs the above sequence brought me back to where I started. The second row is "Purl 1 peg, then E-wrap two pegs" all the way around. You could play with this too, E-wrapping 3 pegs instead of two. If you chose to try this with an odd-numbered loom you will have to figure out a different sequence on the second row so the stitches move the same.

And here she is ... all 6 lbs 3 oz of her. Love.

The whole family met for breakfast last weekend, and Olivia saw Alma's hat and she was amazed that it looked just like hers minus the crochet flower.

I don't have any real knitting needs right now, so putting the looms away until the New Year. I think Kelsey might be using Ilai's blue and green stroller blanket for Alma, so if she would like one with some PINK I'll loom knit Alma one. I think Kelsey might be getting overwhelmed by the amount of pink in the baby clothes though, so that's why I'll ask first.

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I have had a love affair with paper and scissors as long as I can remember. Card stock, stickers, stamps, ink, dies ... I love it all. I took up Loom Knitting in 2011 and also really enjoy knitting without needles so started a blog to share my creations with others. On a road trip in 2015, I stumbled across Zentangle and was immediately hooked. Instead of combining my Zentangle with my card posts, I have now started a blog for that as well!
I live in Alberta Canada, with my DH and 2 furry kids.
Note, I made the background for my Loom Knitting and Card blogs using papers from digital kits by Gina Cabrera at Digital Design Essentials.